July 2010 Current Events: Disasters & Science News

Here are the key events in Science and Disasters news for the month of July 2010.

BP Caps Oil Well After 86 Days of Gushing (July 15): After 86 days of gushing oil into the Gulf of Mexico and several previous attempts to contain the flow, BP caps its leaking oil well. The cap, which can be removed in the future for oil collection or left on indefinitely, is an interim measure, put in place until a relief well can be drilled to fix the problem permanently. The oil well has leaked hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil—some estimates say millions—since the deadly explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig on April 20.

Train Crash in India Kills At Least 63 (July 18): A deadly crash between an express train and a passenger train at a West Bengal, India station kills at least 63 people and wounds more than 100 others. The fault of the crash is attributed to the train's driver, who is also one of the dead; he apparently failed to brake.

New Guidelines Encourage Fewer Caesarean Sections (July 21): The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists releases new guidelines that are intended to make it easier for women to find doctors and hospitals that perform vaginal deliveries on women who have had Caesarean sections during previous pregnancies. It was once considered a high-risk procedure but now is accepted as safe for a majority of women. The rate of Caesarean sections in the United States was about 32% in 2007, a number many women and doctors alike find alarmingly high.

Plane Crash in Pakistan Kills All 152 on Board (July 28): A plane en route to Islamabad, Pakistan crashes in the Himalayan foothills near the capital, killing all 152 passengers and crew members on board. The airliner was flying in intense fog and rain when it crashed.

At Least 400 Killed in Pakistan Floods (July 30): Massive flooding in Pakistan, following two days of record rainfall, kills over 400 people and leaves thousands homeless. Damage to infrastructure has left many villages and towns inaccessible to government aid, stranding many survivors of the floods.